| A | B |
|---|
| paludism | n. (malaria) 1. An infectious disease characterized by cycles of chills, fever, and sweating, caused by the parasitic infection of red blood cells by a protozoan of the genus Plasmodium, which is transmitted by the bite of an infected female anopheles mosquito. Also called paludism, swamp fever. |
| Panchen Lama | n. One of Tibet's two grand lamas, the other being the Dalai Lama. |
| parotid | n. 1. A parotid glad. adj. 1. Situated near the ear. 2. Of or relating to a parotid gland. No origin given. |
| pas de chat (pah duh shah) | n. pl. A ballet jump in which the feet are lifted, one after the other, to the level of the opposite knee. |
| passade | n. 1. A dressage technique in which the horse is made to course repeatedly over the same spot. 2. A passing flirtation or romance. |
| pathos | n. 1. A quality, as of an experience or a work of art, that arouses feelings of pity, sympathy, tenderness, or sorry. 2. The feeling, as of sympathy or pity, so aroused. syns: d2 commiseration, condolence |
| Pecksniffian | adj. Hypocritically benevolent; sanctimonious. |
| pelagic | adj. Of, relating to, or living in open oceans or seas rather than waters adjacent to land or inland waters. |
| Penobscot | n. pl. 1. a. A Native American people inhabiting Penobscot Bay and the Penobschot River valley in Maine. The Penobscot, who joined the Abenaki confederacy in the mid-18th century, are represented in the Maine legislature by a nonvoting delegate. b. A member of this people. 2. The Algonquian language of the Penobschot, a dialect of Eastern Abenaki. |
| penuche, penuchi (puh-Noo-chee) | n. A fudgelike confection of brown sugar, cream or milk, and chopped nuts. |
| perfidy | n. pl. 1. Deliberate breach of faith; calculated violation of trust; treachery. 2. The act or an instance of treachery. syns: faithlessness, duplicity : treason, betrayal, Judas' kiss. any-fealty |
| peroral | adj. Through or by way of the mouth. adv. no origin given. |
| peruke | n. A wig, especially one worn by men in the 17th and 18th centuries; a periwig. |
| philhellenist (fil-HEL-uh-nist) | n. One who admires Greece or the Greeks. |
| phthisical (TIZ-i-kuhl, THIZ) adj of phthisic | n. 1. A disease characterized by the wasting away or atrophy of the body or a part of the body. 2. Tuberculosis of the lungs. No longer in scientific use. 2. Archaic. Any illness of the lungs or throat, such as asthma or a cough. |
| physiatry | n. 1. The branch of medicine that deals with the treatment, prevention, and diagnosis of disease by essentially physical means, including manipulation, massage, and evercise, often with mechanical devices, and the application of heat, cold, electricity, radiation, and water. Also called physiatrics, physiaty. 2. Physical therapy, no origin given. |
| pilaster | n. Architecture. A rectangular column with a capital and base, set into a wall as an ornamental motif. syns: pillar, column, pier |
| pilose | adj. Covered with fine, soft hair syns: hairy, hirsute ant-hairless |
| piosity | n. pl. An exaggerated disply of piety |
| piragua | n. Nautical. 1. A canoe made by hollowing out a tree trunk; a dugout. 2. A flat-bottomed sailing boat with two masts. |
| pisiform | adj. 1. Resembling a pea in size or shape. n. Anatomy. A small bone at the junction of the ulna and the carpus |
| pith helmet | n. A lightweigh hat made from dried pith and worn in tropical countries for protection from the sun. No origin given. |
| plectrum | n. pl. Music. A small, thin piece of metal, plastic, bone, or similar material, used to pluck to strings of certain instruments, such as the guitar or lute. |
| pleurisy | n. Inflammation of the pleura, usually occurring as a complication of a disease such as pneumonia, accompanied by accumulation of fluid in the pleural cavity, chills, fever, and painful breathing and coughing. |
| podagra | n. Gout, especially of the big toe. |
| polyunsaturated | adj. Of or relating to long-chain carbon compounds, especially fats, having many unsaturated bonds. No origin given. |
| poniard | n. 1. A dagger typically having a slender square or triangular blade. tr. v. To stab with such a dagger. syns: n. misericord, stiletto, knife v-pierce, wound, puncture |
| portcullis | n. A grating of iron or wooden bars or slats, suspended in the gateway of a fortified place and lowered to block passage. |
| prawn | n. 1. Any of various edible crustaceans similar to but larger than the shrimps. intr. v. To fish for prawns. |
| pronograde | adj. Walking with the long axis of the body parallel to the ground. Used of quadrupeds. |
| provenance | n. 1. Place of origin; derivation. 2. Proof of authenticity or of past ownership. Ised of art works and antiques. syns: d1 source, origin, provenience |
| punctilios (plural of punctilio) | n. pl. 1. A fine point of etiquette. 2. Precise observance of formalities. syns: niceties, subtleties, particulars : conventions, standards, customs |
| purdah | n. 1. a. A curtain or screen, used mainly in India to keep women separate from men or strangers. b. The Hindu or Moslem system of sex segregation, practiced especially by keeping women in seclusion. 2. Social seclusion. |
